Web Comics are an Important Art Form
The Internet Has Helped Revive the Comic Industry
Sep 20, 2009 Bailey Shoemaker Richards
Traditional comics are hard to break into; in any publishing industry, a lot of the work is about whom writers and artists know. However, the Internet is a great leveler, and allows unconventional types of art to flourish if their creators can use the medium to their advantage.
Web Comics and Art
While the anonymity and ubiquity of the Internet means that the number of comics produced is immense, it also means that artists of incredible quality, creativity and originality have a medium in which to work that allows them to publish at their own pace and receive instant feedback and benefits.
Many web comics begin as experiments and explorations of art styles, character designs and plots; more are abandoned than continued, but the virtue of the Internet is that it allows artists to take much greater risks in publishing things than going through a traditional publishing house.
The readership gained for web comic artists is much greater than with traditional print publishing, and allows authors and artists to communicate directly with their readers. The communication between and collaborations with other artists and writers is also made simpler, quicker and more frequent.
Web Comics and Content
Internet based web comics allow artists to experiment with new forms of expression, like the hypertext included in XKCD and Wondermark comics, which differ greatly in style and content but nonetheless satisfy audiences through their individual styles.
The art of web comics is not confined to the more traditional comic book style illustrations, which makes them appealing to artists who are still developing a style or don’t want to focus on the art but instead get a message out through the writing of the comic. Dresden Codak, for instance, features intricate and complex artwork and a focused storyline, whereas XKCD is composed of stick figure drawings with humorous, erudite social commentary as its focus.
Web Comic Writing
Many web comics focus on a single conceptual idea as the basis of their comics, elaborating on the implications of certain social factors or even the ways in which language is used; others follow a more traditional path, focusing on the storyline and lives of the various characters.
Web comics, by virtue of being immediately accessible to readers across the globe, allow writers to update at their own pace and engage in active discussions with readers, which is another function that traditional comic books cannot offer readers. Established authors like Warren Ellis use web comics as a way to work with another medium and bring even more readers to the Internet.
Although web comics are a very nontraditional art form, they follow the electronic trend of the current publishing industry. By bringing readers online and investing them in the progress of a comic, whether it’s the storyline of Questionable Content or the off-beat humor of Wondermark, web comics are breathing new life into the comic industry.
Web Comics are a Rising Trend in Publishing
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